" Fear makes the wolf bigger than he is."
- German Proverb
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Charlotte was quieter the next morning, but the soft glow of a smile remained etched on her face. No one knew except Gene what had happened last night, and what the lasting effect had on the young medic. But she still grumbled at the sight of all the supplies she needed, plus her medic satchel and all that supplies as well. Joe Toye was on her side. His face of pure sarcasm as he stared down at his own supplies, and the newly issued leg bag that no one had a clue of how it worked.
" Three-day supply of K-rations, chocolate bars, charms candy, powdered coffee, sugar, and matches, compass, bayonet, entrenching tool, ammunition, gas mask, musette bag with ammo, my webbing, my .45, canteen, two cartons of smokes, hawkins mine, two grenades, smoke grenade, gamma grenade, TNT, this bullshit," he yelled slamming the object down, " and a pair of nasty skivvies."
" What's your point?" Perconte asked.
" You know, this stuff weighs as much as I do. I've still got my chute, my reserve chute, my mae west, my M-1." Toye answered angrily.
" Where are you keeping your brass knuckles?" Perconte smirked.
" I could use some brass knuckles." said Toye, with a far off look. Vest came by, looking for Martin, and Charlotte nodded her head where she had last seen him. She walked over to Joe and stuck a cigarette on his ear. He looked up at her. She crouched next to him, and he watched as she looked at all his gear.
" How long'd it take you to memorize all that, and make it sound like a poem?" she asked with a smirk.
" It starts to come to you, mostly after you haul it everywhere with ya." he answered back dryly. She nodded with a small smile.
" I'd definitely get those brass knuckles then, Joe." she said.
" Why?" he asked her, scratching his neck. She shrugged.
" Quick death is easier than a painful death, and a correct upper cut to the jaw could knock out a Kraut immediately." she mused, slightly bored.
" Well, what about you, you ain't got a weapon, sunshine." he said.
" Don't worry, I got my looks Joe Toye, and I'm pretty sure they'll kill." she said with a smirk in her crouched position, glancing up as Toye chuckled.
" Now, young lady," he started sarcastically, but he couldn't finish because she began laughing which made him laugh even more.
" Cute, real, cute sunshine." he said. She stood up from next to him, brushing off his hands.
" I know, I'm adorable." she said and sat back with her own medical supplies, organizing all the crap she had to carry. Charlotte's musette bag was filled to the brim with supplies she'd need, and it was the neatest it probably would ever be. Her medical supplies were neatly placed into her bag, but she'd somehow managed to fit extra little sulfa packets or bottles of morphine into pockets, and zippered up sections. She stared down at the webbing a bit uneasily. She was definitely going to need help putting this on. At first she tried hiking it up, but because of her tiny profile, the thing slid off. Gene was watching from far away with his cigarette before he placed it down and went over to help the young medic. He stepped in front of her as she attempted to pull it up again and she smiled in relief at the sight. She trusted him the most. He was a medic after all, so he wouldn't be squirming adjusting near 'private' areas. He gave the webbing a few tugs before patting her head lightly and smiling.
" Merci, Gene." she called.
" Aucun problème." she heard him answer back. She was clipping her belt snuggly and adjusting her helmet and trying not to laugh at Malarkey making a fuss over the leg bags.
" Why they springing these on us now?" he complained, as Luz hefted over his own bag.
" It's just an extra 80 pounds strapped to your leg." Luz muttered sarcastically. He lifted up a small cord with a patched pocket on the end.
" Does anybody have any idea how the hell this thing works?" he asked, with a dead-ass sarcastic voice, and the death stare that could murder someone. Bill was busy shoveling in his ice cream, sitting in a pile of webbing and gear on the ground.
" Colonel Sink." someone said. Charlotte looked over from her spot as Vest came over with a paper. She looked down at the paper, attempting to remain calm as she read the words, that Luz echoed.
" Soldiers of the regiment:" Luz started, the spot on imitation of Sink dead on, " Tonight, is the night...of nights." Luz stopped the imitation and his own concerned voice came back. " Today as you read this, you are en route to the great adventure for which you have trained for over two years." Charlotte looked up from the paper and stared forward. Her heart felt cold.
" So that's why they gave us ice cream." Bill muttered. He threw the paper back to Popeye who glanced it over.
" Easy Company!" yelled Meehan. " Listen up!" Charlotte walked a few steps out of the group and toward a viewing position.
" Channel coast is socked in with rain and fog. No jump tonight. The invasion has been postponed. We're on a 24 hour stand down." Meehan's voice called over us. Charlotte slowly lifted her helmet from her hair. There would be no jump tonight. The whole time the movie played, Charlotte was staring off in a dazed manner, thinking about everything that had happened so far.
Two years, it'd been.
Two years since she'd been home, since she'd seen her family and Mary-Jane, since the incident. She pushed that from her mind and focused on the movie again, curling up into her innocent ball figure next to Perconte again. She got up halfway through the movie and ventured outside. The sun hadn't fully set, the sky a bluish foggy color with the slightly darkened atmosphere, and a small bit of wind. She walked forward arms crossed, hair in their braids.
" Thinks it's gonna clear up?" she heard a voice say and she turned around to see it was Nixon, a flask in his hand, Winters beside him, both looking gently at the girl. She looked up at the foggy sky, that held so much promise.
" Yes, I do, sir." she said, and looked down smiling at the two. " It always does."
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thanks for reading!
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( a/n ) sorry this was shorter, but it works better for the flow of the story! thanks for all the reads comments, and votes, it means so much to me! you guys are the best!! :)
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